Keyser, WV – The #3-seed Monroe University baseball team bowed out of the 2025 Region 20 Tournament with a pair of losses in the championship round to Harford Community College on Saturday. Game one went to the Fighting Owls, 8-4, before the top seed won game two, 13-5.
The Mustangs came into the contest with zero losses and two wins away from clinching a berth to districts. But it was Harford who came away with two decisive wins to end Monroe's season.
Early traffic troubled the Mustangs in both games, with Harford taking 3-0 and 4-0 leads, respectively. In game one, the lower seed responded well in the second and third innings with RBIs from freshman
Marcus Mercado and sophomore
Ronald Almanzar.
But the Fighting Owls bounced back to jump in front 8-2. Sophomore
Brailyn Cruz was tagged for just two earned runs in the loss as Monroe headed into game two with its back against the wall.
While the Mustangs fell behind 4-0 in the second leg of the series, the fourth inning was crucial in putting the pressure back on Harford.
Freshmen
Juan Garcia,
Dirso Melendez and Mercado all collected RBI base knocks in the inning. Fellow freshman
Gavin Marchese then tied up the game with a sacrifice fly. However, Harford went on to score nine consecutive runs to effectively end Monroe's season.
Freshmen
Jesus Nieves,
Victor Ceballos,
Nair Jamanika and Mercado were named to the All-Tournament team.
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE UNIVERSITY
The athletic program at Monroe University encompasses a total of 26 teams competing across nine sports. There are 19 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well as the Monroe University marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeUMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs).
